Crossed Destinies
by Triple-Driple
Summary: AU- After tragedy strikes when her parents die and when she figures out her brother is actually adopted, Mia's life is put through a whirlwind of decisions and choices each with a consequence, will she make it through with all of herself intact?
1. Chapter 1: Falling apart

**Crossed Destinies**

**Chapter 1**

**Falling apart**

**A/N: Bonjour tout monde, c'est moi! Hello people, its triple-driple here with yet another Power Rangers story. This is an AU story so forgive me if the characters turn out slightly OOC. I don't really like not staying very true to the characters but that's kind of how I want the story. Once again I'd like to mention that the main pairing is Jayden/Mia, so if you don't like… politely back away and no one will get hurt. Anyway, here's a summary to clarify things before we go on. No disclaimer because I find typing one in every stinking story is really annoying and worthless (Considering this is fanfiction, emphasis on the fan). Sorry about my blabbering… back to the main task at hand, the summary.**

**Summary: Mia is the princess to a kingdom and surprisingly the heiress to the throne after her parents' death and after she discovers that her little brother Terry who was supposed to take over was actually adopted. Her adviser and other elders in the Kingdom are expecting her get married to a man she doesn't love in order for the kingdom not to lapse.**

**Cheesy… I know! But I kinda like this kind of stories, every little girl dreams of being a princess, but this is as close as I can get to royalty *sigh*. But anyway… here's the first chapter, enjoy:**

* * *

A Japanese girl with silk long black hair flowing over her shoulders to the back of her Pink ankle-length gown paced up and down her chambers. She was having the worst days of her life… more than anyone can ever imagine. First, her mother had died when she was a young girl from a terrible plague. Secondly, her father just passed on because over the years he had developed an illness and was on his death bed. She thought her life couldn't get any worse but that was more of a jinx than assurance.

Just a few days ago, she found out that her little brother, Terrance (Terry, he preferred even more) who was supposed to take the throne was actually adopted meaning he couldn't rule the kingdom. Afterwards, he left in search of his real parents and nothing or no one could change his mind or stop him.

Then afterwards she learned that she had to get married and apparently they already had someone in mind for her, the Head Knight and guardian to the castle Kevin Andrews. Sure she liked Kevin and they were good friends ever since they were toddlers but getting married to him unsettled her in so many ways she couldn't imagine. She didn't like him that way and she was 200% sure he didn't return the feeling either.

She heard a knock on her door and ignored it before plummeting to her bed and groaning in annoyance into her pillow. 'It's probably Mentor Ji coming to reason with me,' she thought inwardly rolling her eyes. Nothing was going to change her decision; she would only marry the person she loved and that was final. Her thoughts were changed when the door creaked open and footsteps were walking towards her bed. 'No one opens my door without my permission,' she thought 'well… except,' she lifted her head from the pillow and her suspicions were correct.

There sitting at the edge of her bed was her right hand maiden, Emily. She had partially short blonde hair that reached and rested directly on her shoulders and was in a yellow gown. The Princess lifted herself up and sat upright on her bed.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked and the Princess scoffed before rolling her eyes. "Look Princess, I know that you aren't fond of the idea of marrying Kevin but it isn't such a bad idea."

"Not you too," The Princess sighed sadly

"Princess, I'm being honest." Emily said "It won't be that bad."

"Yes, it won't be that bad… it would the first sign of apocalypse." The princess growled

"Listen Mia, I know you do not like the idea but—"

"But nothing Emily, you know me better than anyone else. I will not marry for anything other than love… I am not in love with Kevin; I won't get married to him, done!" Mia said scalding at her right hand maiden

"I'm not saying that you should, I'm being a good friend by suggesting that because it's for the good of the kingdom." Emily said trying to reason with her but Princess Mia just shook her head

"You would really be a good friend by telling me that I don't have to marry for anyone but myself instead of telling me that I should consider it." Mia said

Emily let out a defeated sigh before saying "You're right, I'm very sorry about my behaviour back then. I should stop acting like your advisor and start acting like your friend."

"Thank you," Mia said happily "I already have Mentor for my advising job… I don't really need another."

"So you really don't want to get married to him?" Emily asked

"Yes Emily," Mia gave a stern nod

"Why?" Emily asked

"Well," Mia sighed before hopping off of her bed "It's just… well I… you know—"

"Don't you like him?" Emily asked

"Of course I do, but not in that manner," Mia said

"But why? You could grow to love him if you give it a chance," Emily said "Your parents got married like that."

"Emily… may I remind you that I am my own person and I needn't be compared with my parents," Mia said sternly "Even if, me and Kevin are like… two different worlds. The possibilities of those worlds colliding are one in gazillion chance."

"Please make me understand here why that is such a doubt-filled possibility." Emily said

"Well," Mia then began pacing slowly about her room stammering trying to come up with the words "I… you see… um—" She stopped and turned back to the younger girl in yellow and said "Look, all I know is that I'm not for the idea alright?"

"No offense my princess but… he is the best choice for the next ruling king for this kingdom." Emily said

"But what about the best choice for me? Is everyone else not considering that I'm in the picture?" Mia demanded

"Well you are the princess; you have to be making sacrifices for the kingdom whether good or bad." Emily said "Besides… you have to protect this kingdom, what if Xandred—"

"Emily… Xandred is just a myth," Mia cut her off "I don't get that anyways, I mean if he wanted to vaporize us we would already be dead by now."

"You don't know that." Emily said "You're the one who always believes in this type of things."

"Fairytales aren't myths, they maybe similar but they aren't the same." Mia said

"Then why do you think the elders want you wedded to Kevin so bad?" Emily asked

"I don't know," Mia shrugged "Maybe their beliefs that that little myth might be true and exists. But there is still no way I'm marrying Kevin."

"But how do you change the elders' minds?" Emily asked

"You can't… they're as dead set to the idea as Terry was to leaving to look for his birth parents." Mia said "I wish Terry were here. He'd probably know what to do."

Emily stood up from the bed and walked over to the Princess "Don't worry Mia, you'll figure it out."

Just then they heard a knock on the door and Mia could already sense who it was and correctly this time. An aged Japanese man entered, in a grey kimono. Mia sat back on the bed already knowing where this conversation was headed even though they hadn't started it yet. Just having him in the room gave her a mental vision of what was going to happen.

"Emily, could I speak to the Princess…alone?" The man asked her and Emily gave a small bow.

"I'll go and check on my sister, she's still in the healers' quarters as we speak." Emily said before walking out of the room and closing the door behind her.

"Are you okay Mia?" The man asked her

"I'm fine Mentor," Mia nodded

"But you paced out of the throne room when the elders suggested you marry Kevin." Mentor said

"That's just it Mentor… I don't want to get married to Kevin." Mia said calmly

"He is the best suitor," Mentor said

"That's very ironic, someone who is a suitor for the throne but not a suitor for the Princess." Mia rolled her eyes

"But my princess, I know you are not fond of the expectation but look on the bright side of it." Mentor said

"There is no bright side," Mia shook her head

"Princess, please acknowledge the fact that this decision is not only for you but the entire kingdom," Mentor reminded her "You are a princess Mia…you should consider the needs of your kingdom before what you desire."

"What I desire right now is that I wasn't born into the Royal family," Mia said coldly "Mentor… I deserve my happiness too. Can't I just marry someone I love, who will also be a good suitor for the throne and get things done?"

"Good is not good enough. We need the best we can find." Mentor told her

"What I need is for this conversation to finish here because nothing will change my mind. I will not marry Kevin and that is final." Mia said

Mentor sighed knowing that nothing will change her mind. She was a Watanabe and Watanabes are the type that do not like changing their minds, it would only take a miracle. Considering the fact that she might need sometime to think this through, he walked out of her chambers and closed the door. Even though he was mentoring her, being an advisor and a father figure to her… sometimes she was such a pain.

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**Done with the first chapter, Phew! That was tough! Hopefully, you guys like and if you do you'll be hearing from me soon.**

**For all of those who were following Life of a Samurai, on a sad note I have decided to discontinue the story. Sorry people, I'm discontinuing it for three reasons:**

**I had big changes for the story like I said mentioned but problem is that most of the things I couldn't work on was making it difficult to write and longer to update.****The story was going to be long but the ideas I had weren't as good as I thought. The story would've led to something bigger and that's what made it harder.****You guys already know what is gonna happen in the end. Even if there were changes it would still end up to the same thing. We'd all know what goes on afterwards so why repeat? It sounds like an 'I'm all out of ideas' story and I just started this thing.**

**Bye guys.**


	2. Chapter 2: Going in Circles

**Crossed Destinies**

**Chapter 2**

**Going in circles**

* * *

Everything seemed to be against Mia that week, even her dream world was strange and confusing. She woke the next morning from a strange dream… some male figure with blue eyes, azure almost and coco blonde hair had been dominant of her dreams for awhile now and it was driving her nuts. She didn't know who this man was, she wasn't even sure if he lived in the kingdom. This man probably didn't exist and her mind had been playing tricks on her.

She shrugged of the feeling and jumped out of her bed and sluggishly walked to the showers. She had a long, long day ahead of her and she needed as much energy as she could to hear the elders try and plead with her and pointlessly give her a million reasons why marrying Kevin was a good idea. This is one of those moments when she wished that Terry or her parents were here; she missed them dearly and felt deserted by fate and with Terry, by choice.

She got dressed in yet again, another pink gown and tied her long hair in a messy ponytail before going off to the kitchen to get her breakfast. She sighed as she played around with her oatmeal, although she needed her right hand maiden to talk to, she didn't want to disturb Emily because she was probably watching over her ill sister. Even though Emily was expectant to be watching over Mia at every waking moment, Mia understood the fact that there are some other people who needed her more than she did. Even though Emily was quite a klutz, she was very smart, kind and understanding and that overruled all of her flaws.

"Are you alright Princess?" Mia turned around to look at the door and smiled as she saw her friend obviously dressed in yellow walk over to the table and take a seat next to her.

"Yeah… I'm just thinking." Mia said as she turned back to her oatmeal and proceeded playing around with it moving her spoon from one side to another."How is your sister?"

"The healers are trying," Emily said with a heavy sigh "But anyways… how is the situation going?"

"Terrible!" Mia said without missing a beat "The elders want to meet with me again to talk about getting married to Kevin again."

"Did I hear my name?" The young ladies turned their heads to the door and saw an African-American man walk towards them. Mia turned back to what she was doing trying not to make eye contact as the guard sat next to her right hand maiden.

"Good morning your Highness… morning Emily." the man said with a bow before taking a seat next to Emily "What are we talking about?" he asked

"Nothing much Kevin… aren't you supposed to be training?" Emily asked

"I'm here for breakfast," Kevin said "It's the most important meal of the day."

"Well, Penelope made a fresh batch of oatmeal so help yourself," Mia told the head guard

"Thank you Princess," Kevin said before he looked at her concerned "Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine." Mia said

"I'm sorry about the elders yesterday," Kevin said apologetically "they're just thinking about what's best for the kingdom." he then stood up to get a bowl

"I understand Kevin," Mia nodded

"But it wasn't right to throw it at you like that," Kevin said as he grabbed a bowl and walked over to the stove

"It's alright but…" Mia then stopped

"But what?" Kevin asked closing the pot of oatmeal after he served himself

"It's nothing," the Princess said before taking a spoonful of her oatmeal

"It has to be something Mia," Kevin said taking his seat once more "We've been friends ever since we were little, you can tell me."

Mia sighed before saying "Be honest with me please… do you really want to get married to me?"

"I beg your pardon?" Kevin asked

"I said do you really want to get married to me?" Mia repeated

"Well," Kevin said shifting uncomfortably in his seat "I don't like the idea but I'd like to do what's best for the kingdom."

"What?" Mia said taken aback by his words

"The idea of getting married to you is very unsettling but if it's the best choice for the kingdom then I'm happy to co-operate." Kevin said casually before taking a bite of his oatmeal

"Your pulling my leg aren't you?" Mia asked

"I'm being honest here," Kevin said before he heard a whistle. He then sighed pushing his bowl away as it signalled for him to get to training "I have to go Princess, duty calls. See you later." Kevin then stood up and paced out of the room

"You see?" Mia said once she was sure Kevin was out of an earshot "In the past, we could talk easily but know all he cares about is his duties to the kingdom and protecting me and the kingdom."

"What's so bad about that?" Emily shrugged not seeing the down side

"Ever since he got promoted to head guard he's changed a lot." Mia said "He wasn't this serious before."

"I understand but… he's the best choice for the kingdom. Well… that's what the elders think." Emily said "Isn't there anyway to change their minds?"

"Like I said before, nothing can change their minds." Mia said before taking another spoonful of her oatmeal.

"Maybe you can," Emily said thoughtfully and for once Mia had hope

"What's your idea?" Mia asked almost pleadingly

"Well… the elders think that Kevin is the best suitor for the throne right?" Emily asked and Mia nodded "What if you picked someone else?"

"Don't you think I've tried that Emily?" Mia asked

"Not in that manner. What I mean is that there are lots of noblemen in this kingdom besides Kevin… what if one of them is a suitor and your one true love at the same time?"

"Emily, you are a genius," Mia grinned from ear to ear "thank you."

"You're welcome," Emily said

"All I need to do is find a nobleman in the kingdom… one that could be a suitor and someone who I can actually marry." Mia said

"But wait…" Emily stopped her giddiness "What if the elders refuse the idea?"

"Leave that to me," Mia said before she stood up from her seat "Thanks again." Mia said before pacing out of the room.

Emily shook her head before grabbing Mia and Kevin's abandoned plates and placing them in the sink before walking out of the kitchen.

* * *

In the forests there about, the sound of horses running with the grunts they gave out echoed through the trees. Just then appeared a male with coco-blonde hair dressed in red on a white horse. On his horse showed a white shield and in the middle a Japanese Kanji for fire written in red.

"Lauren, hurry up." The man shouted as he laid eyes on his female companion who was riding on a black horse. She had bleach-blonde hair and emerald green eyes, she was dressed in orange and had a white shield similar to her male companion's but hers had an orange lightning symbol on it instead of a red fire symbol.

"I'm coming," She said as she approached him while he was dismounting his horse. She stopped her horse near the white one and dismounted hers.

"We're going to camp here for today and then tomorrow we set off to another part," The man said taking his pack saddle off of his horse and setting it on the ground

"But Jayden… don't you think it's wiser to go into a city? It's much safer there than roaming around the forests." Lauren asked

"Actually it isn't. If we go there they'll be a high possibility of the people finding out who we really are." Jayden said

"So we're the Shiba siblings, protectors of the kingdom, so what if people find out?" Lauren asked not seeing the downside

"We could put lives in danger and Xandred will come after us," Jayden said

"And it's much safer out here where Xandred or one of his subjects could easily find us? We might as well make a giant sign with flashing lights that says 'The Shiba Siblings are here, catch us,'" Lauren scoffed

"No one lurks around these forests… and that's the best part." Jayden said

"And why exactly do you say that?" Lauren asked

"Because if we do, we won't be exposed and Xandred won' find us," Jayden said

"If I had a silver coin for every time you've said that, I could afford a cart instead of riding on horse all day until my legs get numb." Lauren said

"Stop your crying," Jayden said

"I'm not crying… I'm casually whining. It's different!" She argued

"Whatever, right now... we go look for fire wood. I'm protecting us for the sake of getting rid of Master Xandred once and for all. You get started on setting up camp while I go find some food and firewood, we then train afterwards. Under no circumstances do we enter the kingdom at all." Jayden said "Understood?"

"Yes little brother," Lauren said with an annoyed sigh

"Good, now let's get a move on it," Jayden said tying his and Lauren's horse to a tree. He then walked off into the forest and Lauren then started to unload the saddle packs.

"Why did Aunt Darcey have to fill his head with all that 'man of the family,' nonsense?" Lauren asked herself "His ego is already big enough for his head!" Lauren shook her head as she continued to unload the saddle packs.

* * *

Mia walked onto the throne room where the elders were waiting for her; she quickly rushed to the front and cleared her throat for the elders to give her their attention.

"Before we begin again, I'd like to make a proposal," Mia began "As you all know that the death of my father had been a heavy devastation to the entire kingdom and so did the death of my mother. The revelation of my brother not being born into the royal family was a great shock indeed and now I'm the only hope for this kingdom. I hereby announce that I will not be marrying the head guard Kevin Andrews—" Just then an instinct chatter between the elders interrupted her before she cleared her throat loudly again "But I will not rule this kingdom unwedded. So I have decided that you as the council members should grant me your blessings to find another nobleman in this kingdom who will be a suitor for the throne." Another instinct chatter rose amongst the elders before her advisor rose up

"Your Highness, do you actually think that is a good idea?" Mentor Ji asked

"Well it's the only idea that allows me and the kingdom to have what we both want." Mia nodded

"But, what if we do not accept your proposal?" Mentor asked

"Then I will not go by your wish and marry Kevin." Mia said sternly

"But—"

"We accept," Mentor who was cut off look puzzled to see that of all people, the leader of the council Lord Andrews, Kevin's father rise and accept her proposal. "But only on one condition."

"And may I ask what your condition is?" Mia asked

"You may only have 28 days to find him. Four weeks exactly since we need a king fast. If you do not succeed then you'll have to marry my son." Lord Andrews said

"But Lord Andrews…"

"It's either that or nothing at all your highness," Lord Andrews said sternly. Mia let out a sigh before slightly curtsying "I accept."

"Excellent my princess," Lord Andrews smiled "I'm glad we found some middle ground."

"Yes," the princess nodded "Now if that is all, the meeting is adjourned." Everyone stood up on their feet and walked out of the throne room. After they all left Mia collapsed to the throne chair and took released a deep breath. "Hopefully this plan works."

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**That's it for now folks! Hope you guys enjoyed the story, later.**


	3. Chapter 3: Forest Rage

**Crossed Destinies**

**Chapter 3**

**Forest Rage**

Emily was outside the castle in the gardens talking to the gardeners when a young man walked out of the castle sadly racing away. Emily wanted to go in further to investigate what had happened but had gotten what she wanted when the princess stepped out of the castle and ran a hand through her jet black hair.

"I'm glad that's the last guy I have to talk to today," Mia sighed in relief

"He wasn't worth the time?" Emily chuckled

"At all!" Mia exclaimed

"What did you tell him anyway?" Emily asked

"We just talked, we had nothing in common… he wasn't even interested in the well being of the kingdom. I told him gently but he took it the wrong way and ran out wailing like a baby." Mia said

"Funny," Emily laughed "So… who do you like so far?"

"None," Mia exclaimed honestly

"Really? Not even one who strikes you as appealing?" Emily asked

"Most of them were like Kevin robots... others just wanted the crown and the ones of that kind that ran out on me just wanted to get in my pants!" Mia explained

Emily began laughing and couldn't contain it until Mia told her to stop. "Come on Princess, its funny. Laugh a little!"

"Emily, you're not getting this… it's been 5 days since I started looking for a nobleman who I would grow on but—" Mia stopped and sighed "23 more days to go and if I do not find a man then I'm stuck with Kevin."

"Princess," Emily said "Don't worry. Someone will come up,"

"What I really need right now… is a punching dummy!" Mia sighed a she stomped off into the castle. Emily sighed and supposed she had to go after her until she was stopped by a voice from behind her calling her name. She turned around and smiled as she laid eyes on her friend Mike who was also a guard in the kingdom.

"Hey Mike… aren't you supposed to be training with the other guards?" Emily asked

"I dodged afternoon practice, I'm really tired!" Mike complained and Emily couldn't help but laugh. It was very typical of Mike acting lazy even though he was on of the strongest in the entire kingdom.

"You didn't come here on to have a 'date' with the princess?" Emily asked

"Heck no!" Mike shook his head "Mia is like my sister and there is no way in heaven's name that I would even consider that." he then shuddered at the mental image of him and the princess

"So you came here to bug me?" Emily asked raising a brow at him

"In a matter of fact I did," Mike smirked and Emily simply rolled her eyes at her green friend.

"Well 'mess with Emily hour' has come to an abrupt stop," Emily said "I have to go and find the princess." Mike's smile turned into a frown and Emily shrugged "What's the matter?"

"You do know that the princess can take care of herself right?" Mike asked her

"I know but… right now Mia needs someone and she isn't very keen on talking to Kevin about it," Emily admitted "Mentor Ji is totally out of the question so— here I am."

"But can't you leave her alone for a little while?" Mike asked "It's been a while since we've hung out and between your duties to Mia and taking care of Serena, you don't make time for your friends anymore than you used to."

Emily sighed and ran a hand through her hair before saying "Mike, I'm sorry that we haven't done anything together in some time but I've been really busy lately. I promise I'll make it up to you sometime,"

"Question is— when?" Mike asked

"I'll ask the healers to keep and eye on Serena for tonight and we can go by the lake in the woods like we used to do when we were kids." Emily suggested and Mike grinned

"Now there's the Emily I know," Mike said and Emily looked at the floor, as a shade of crimson crept up her cheeks.

"Now go train before Kevin snaps your head off," Emily said

"Yes Sir!" Mike quipped and gave Emily a one armed hug before walking into the distance. Emily watched him go and sighed heavily when she noticed that he was out of her presence. It was so comforting when he was around and she didn't have to worry about anything… from taking care of the princess to taking care of her sister, all of that seemed to fade away only after a second with him around. She then snapped back into reality after a bit of building castles in the air and remembered what she was to do. She then paced back into the castle to find Mia.

Lauren groaned in annoyance as she was sent off to fish for dinner. They were in another camping spot in the forest but this time near the capital. She was extremely tired of sneaking around like her little brother in high status 'Cagnito'.

"What I'd really like right now… is a place to stay that doesn't freeze or that will guarantee me rest without worrying about a wild bear jumping through the bushes and eating me up," Lauren muttered to herself "But will he listen? No! I wish someone would pull him down a peg or two,"

"Now that's just bad mouthing me," Lauren turned to see her brother glaring at her and she smirked at him.

"You have your hobbies and I have mine…" Lauren then turned back to the fishing rod and glared at it "And fishing is definitely not one of them."

"Yet you're the first to gobble into it once it's cooked," Jayden said

"I am this close to becoming a vegetarian," Lauren glared at her brother "I do not appreciate you slamming down my mood."

"Sorry," Jayden said as he sat next to her "I heard all you said back there… you aren't really happy about all of this are you?"

"Gee brother!" Lauren smiled sarcastically "You know me so well,"

"Listen Lauren, I know you're angry at me," Jayden said

"Once again… you are such a genius!" Lauren rolled her eyes

"Neither the less, I get it. It's just we keep the people safer if we—"

"We stay as far away from the cities in the kingdom, I know." Lauren said handing him the fishing rod and standing up "But we're not doing our duty as guardians Jay."

"We are by keeping Xandred off track," Jayden said

"But Xandred is after the Watanabe and Shiba clan. Need I remind you that the Watanabe clan are the rulers of this kingdom?" Lauren said

"Xandred wants to wipe us out first leaving the Watanabe's wide open to attack," Jayden explained

"But don't you know that the king and queen are already kaput?" Lauren asked "The prince is not really the prince and heir to the throne and the only person left is the princess. Do you know how vulnerable she could be at this moment?"

"Her family powers will protect her," Jayden reminded her calmly

"But she has no clue on how to use her powers," Lauren told him

"I'll figure something out," Jayden said "But the only option we have right now is to pray that the princess figure sout how to unlock her powers."

"Like hell **you** should," Lauren said straining the word 'you' "I wanted to protect the kingdom like the guardians we're supposed to do and the only reason why I'm here is because of you."

"Alright Lauren," Jayden said "I get it. You just keep practising the seal; I'll take on the fishing from here." Just then his line began to tug. He took attention and reeled the line up and caught two large fish at one go. Lauren's jaw dropped at the scene and flabbergasted, she shouted "How?"

"Fish really don't like you huh?" Jayden laughed at his older sister.

She turned around and stomped off back to camp "It's official, I detest fish!"

As night fell, Mike and Emily had decided to meet and take a stroll near the stream like they planned on earlier. When she moved there from Stoneridge when they were younger and Emily's father was working as a guard they always used to go there and pretend they were guards just like their dads. It was the time when Serena was still well and planning on being the princess's right hand maiden. At that time Emily was dead set on following her dad's footsteps and breaking history as the first Lady guard in the kingdom (except people thought she wouldn't succeed because of her clumsiness) but when Serena gained her sickness her dad stopped training her and her mother started to teach her how to be a maiden and right hand to the princess when she got older, soon her parents moved away from the capital and back into Stoneridge where her father had began life as a merchant leaving Emily and Serena with the royal family.

Ever since then life had been a whirlwind for her as she didn't know what to do next. Sure Mike helped her with her fighting skills but it wasn't the same as her ambitions before.

"Emily? What are you thinking about?" Mike asked her with curiosity

"Nothing too important," Emily shrugged off the words. Mike looked at her unconvinced before turning away and continuing to walk together in a comfortable silence.

"What happened after I left this afternoon?" Mike asked breaking the silence

"I went after the princess and found her in the guards' indoor training room whacking a dummy with a sword." Emily said and Mike laughed

"She would make a good guard if she wasn't a princess," Mike laughed but stopped when Emily didn't take the bait. She just looked to the floor in sadness and Mike realised what he had said "Emily, I'm—"

"Its okay Mike," Emily assured him "That was a passed dream… now I'm working as the princess's guardian. I have all I need right now."

"Don't you miss that?" Mike asked "I mean you were really good, you beat a few times in the past."

"Not at all," Emily shook her head denying the fact "I'd make a horrible guard. I can't really make it down the stairs a few times with out tumbling down."

"That was when we were younger," Mike said

"If younger means last week then we grew up pretty fast if you ask me," Emily chuckled and Mike smiled at her before giving her a look filled with confusion and heavy concern.

"You fell down the stairs last week?" Mike asked shocked

Emily cleared her throat before whistling in a suspicious tone, she turned to see the look on Mike's face and laughed at it "Don't worry Mike, I'm alright. I've tumbled down the stairs before… I think I know how to stop myself from a heavy fall and you know that. Why the sudden concern?"

Mike gave out a sheepish grin scratching the back of his neck. "Nothing really, I just wanted to make sure you're okay."

"Oh… okay," Emily said and they continued to walk through the woods. Just then she heard a loud screech and stopped "Mike, what was that?"

"I heard nothing!" Mike shrugged but Emily looked at him with a serious look on her face. No one except for her and Mike came out in the woods… other subjects and citizens saw it as dangerous and stayed in the city bounds. Just then the screeching sound came again.

"There it is again," Emily whispered

"Now this time I heard," Mike said "It's coming from the North-west direction."

"Let's go check it out," Emily said and her and Mike paced off in the other direction

Lauren was with a sword in her hand swinging it repeatedly at her invisible opponent. She then did a series of backflips before landing on her squatted legs and swinging her sword again. Just then she heard a screeching sound and chuckled "Jayden… that isn't going to work on me again. It's not scary, it's just pathetic."

The screeching sound returned again and this time Lauren scoffed "Jayden, I thought I told you—" She turned around and her jaw dropped in fear as she came face to face with a griffin. It screeched in her face and she toppled backwards.

"Jayden!" She screamed before rolling out of the way as the Griffin released fire breath. "Okay… that is no ordinary griffin." She stood up and took her battle stance as she began to fight the griffin keeping it as far away as she could from her.

"Electric shock wave," She shouted as she swung her sword in the direction of the griffin but only enraged it and it breathed out fire at her again.

Just then two faces she'd never seen before came running in her direction. "You two stay back," Lauren shouted to the two but the man in green just drew out his sword telling his female companion to stay back before springing into action helping her. Again cracks in the wood began to shine red as monsters of the same type jumped out.

"Moogers!" Lauren growled

"What now-s?" the man asked Lauren

"Stay back," Lauren told him again but this time he charged out for the monsters leaving Lauren with the griffin 'Who is that guy anyway?' she thought but then rolled out of the way when the griffin shot fire out at her. She then gasped when she saw the blonde girl being approached by Moogers. "Watch out!" The girl heard her shout and took action. She kicked one in the chest and held one by the arm as she intervened and grabbed his sword striking it across the chest. She then charged out at the others swinging at each of them. Lauren then turned to the man in green doing backflips as he destroyed the Moogers that approached him, her and the man double teamed as they destroyed the Moogers together. She had to admit that they were pretty good considering they had no experience in this sort of battle… or so she thought. She was brought out of her thinking when the griffin threw a claw and hit her across the chest sending her flying back. She stood up again and called out "Battlefield mode," as orange armour covered her entire body.

"Lauren," She heard and turned her head as Jayden rushed for her. He drew out his sword and shouted "Battlefield mode," before he was covered in red armour. He then charged out at the griffin and said "Lauren… get the Moogers and get those two out of here!"

Lauren nodded before rushing over to the two who joined in the battle. She helped the lady first by accessing all her lightning powers and destroying the lot of Moogers around the two. "You two should get out of here!" She repeated growling at the two before rushing back to the griffin. She kept an eye on the two who hadn't left. She thought they were suicidal maniacs for staying behind to watch a battle like this but then due to the fact that she was distracted, the griffin took its opportunity to strike but Jayden jumped in the way receiving the blow and falling to the ground as his armour disappeared and a heavy wound on his chest.

"Jayden!" Lauren screamed and she saw the girl and guy leap from their places and over to the fallen guardian.

Lauren's eyes filled with rage and clouded in an angry shade of Orange and she released a battle cry before leaping into the air as lightning streaks encircled her sword and she sliced through the griffin. The griffin let out a final screech as it fell into the ground blowing up. Lauren quickly powered down and rushed over to the kingdom.

Her green eyes were heavy with tears as she stared at her brother looking lifeless. She had lost her entire family due to Master Xandred and his minions and there was no way she was going to lose her brother too.

"Jayden, please wake up," Lauren said, her eyes getting heavy with tears. She sniffled a little and the blonde girl comforted her.

"We have got to get her back to the castle. The healers will attend to his wounds immediately," the man said and Lauren couldn't help but nod her head. The man then pulled Jayden and threw him over his shoulder and carried him back to the castle with Lauren and the blonde girl in yellow in tow.


	4. Chapter 4: Unexpected Visitors

**Crossed Destinies**

**Chapter 4**

**Unexpected Visitors**

Mia had to admit that she hated when she didn't know what was going on in her life or around her directly. It made her feel left out and as if she had no flipping idea what the hell was going on. She approached the castle as she returned from the orphanage to visit the children like she usually did when she was stressed out and needed cheering up.

She then saw her loyal guard in green pacing in front of the castle. He then stopped when he realised someone approaching. He quickly turned to lay eyes on the princess in pink. "Princess!" Mike paced towards her

"What is it Mike?" Mia asked with an annoyed huff. She had been the punch line to most of his jokes but this time she didn't have the time or energy to deal with them. This finding a husband thing stressed her out and she was still adamant to her decision of refusing to receive Kevin's hand in marriage.

"Princess, there's something you need to know," Mike said but before words could escape Mia's mouth Mike quickly added "and it needs to be attended to now."

"This better be important," Mia muttered to one of her high ranked guards.

"While Emily and I were taking a stroll in the woods we encountered a warrior, a female knight battling a griffin along with a few… weird looking monsters." Mike said and Mia couldn't help but give him an eye roll and shake her head at him.

"Mike… I told you that this has to be important. Griffins and monsters are non-existent." Mia said

"But princess, honestly," Mike continued "She was joined by a companion of hers and he was wounded terribly during the battle. He is being attended to in the healers' quarters."

"Are you sure you aren't pranking me?" Mia narrowed her eyes at the guard.

"If you do not believe me then you can come and see for yourself." Mike challenged and Mia released a sigh.

"Alright! Take me to him," Mia said before being led into the castle by the guard in green.

**XXxxXX**

Lauren felt like a complete stranger in the castle. She was currently in the room the girl in yellow offered her. She wanted to be next to her brother but seeing him in that state was too depressing. She had lost everything in such a short period of time and she didn't want to lose her little brother too.

She sat on the bed hugging her knees against her chest laying her chin on top. She gasped softly as she quietly sobbed, the tears rolling down her cheek. She didn't want to imagine life without her little brother on her side. They may have been a battling duo but they were so close and loved each other so dearly. She cursed how he took the hit for her because her focus was on those two morons who couldn't understand the term 'get out of here'.

Just then there was a knock on her chamber door and entered the blonde girl in yellow from earlier carrying a tray with a plate of food. Lauren couldn't help but roll her eyes at the younger girl. She was sure that if she stayed longer than she would, Lauren would be hung for murder. She held in her desire to snap at the girl and decided to stay quiet. She was able to protect herself… if only she knew that other lives were at stake at that very moment.

"Hello," the girl said cheery and Lauren was sure that this girl wouldn't make it out of the room alive. Her cheeriness was just making her want to strangle the girl even more. The girl placed the tray on her bedside before sitting on the edge of the bed where Lauren was propped up.

"Are you okay?" the girl asked and she heard Lauren mutter something under her breath. "I brought you food," she tried again. Lauren just took a glance at the girl and then at the plate before propping her head back on her knees.

She heard the girl sigh and say "I'm very sorry about what had happened. I'm sure your boyfriend will be fine."

This is when Lauren scoffed and said "That's my little brother,"

The girl let out a small smile when she realised she finally gotten through to her. "Your brother will be fine. I assure you… the healers are doing their best to treat him."

"And if they don't succeed? What'll happen next?" Lauren asked rudely before mimicking someone else's voice "I'm sorry, we lost your brother. Don't worry… everything will be alright," Lauren rolled her eyes before returning to her regular voice "Bullshit!"

"The healers are doing their best, just try to hold on." the girl tried again.

"'Just hold on,' she says," Lauren said "Easy for you to say, you have no idea what I'm going through."

"Actually—"

"And don't even think about saying you do because you don't." Lauren interrupted, shouting "I don't need anyone's bloody sympathy!" She lifted up her head as she saw the girl look at her with sober eyes as the cheeriness in her face was replaced with sorrow. Lauren's anger dimmed down and she couldn't help but feel bad. She didn't even know who this person was and what she was going through and she made comments without thinking.

"My sister Serena is suffering from a very serious illness that is caused by the plague that had taken the life of our queen. The healers are trying by all means to restore her but she just gets worse and worse by the day." The girl said sadly and Lauren felt a pint of guilt stabbing her chest. Someone who knows what she's going through, the fear of losing a loved one, is here to sympathize with her and keep her strong like she does herself and she was treating her like dirt.

"I'm so sorry," Lauren said

"It's not your fault," the girl said "I just have faith and pray that she gets well. I suggest you do the same for your brother… um…"

"Lauren," Lauren told her "My name is Lauren and my little brother is Jayden."

"I'm Emily," Emily chirped "Nice to meet you."

"Same to you," Lauren said as they fell back into an uncomfortable silence. Lauren wasn't quite of a conversationalist, as a Shiba in hiding she had kept to herself and her family.

"Are you going to be okay?" Emily said breaking the silence

"I'm just hopping my little brother will be okay," Lauren said burying her face in her knees "He's all I have,"

Emily nodded in understanding then hesitantly put a hand on her back rubbing her soothingly comforting her.

"Don't worry," Emily said "We're here for you."

Lauren looked up and smiled "Thanks Emily, I really appreciate it."

Emily returned the gesture before standing up and making her way towards the door. "You should probably eat before your food gets cold." Emily said turning her head to Lauren.

Lauren took a look at the plate and a disgusted look crossed her face when she noticed it was the most annoying thing she could ever think of "Fish!" She muttered as she shuddered loudly at it.

"You don't like fish?" Emily asked

"Let's just say that fish and I aren't exactly the best of friends." Lauren chuckled and Emily grinned seeing that she had a bit of hope left in her.

"Then why don't you see your brother?" Emily suggested and Lauren's small smile disappeared instantly as Emily wondered if she had said something wrong.

"Sorry," Lauren admitted "It's just depressing seeing him like that. He looks so vulnerable and weak."

Emily nodded in understanding "I'll check up on you later," She then made her way out of the room leaving Lauren to her thoughts.

**XXxxXX**

Mia was led into the healers' quarters by Mike into the room where the brave knight laid, wounded. Mike knocked before entering after he heard no response.

'The healers must've left for dinner,' Mike thought to himself as he saw no one except for the man lying still in the bed. His chest slowly moving up and down and a few strands of his semi brown hair drooping down onto his face. He had noticed that there was a cast on his arm and a bandage plastered across his lower chest stained red.

Mia entered and gasped softly at the figure injured. She was a hundred percent sure she had seen him before… somewhere… anywhere.

"Who is he?" Mia asked still trying to recognise him

"I'm not sure," Mike shrugged "Everything went so fast and we didn't have time to inquire. But you could ask the fellow knight who was with him during the attack."

"I'll do just that," Mia said, not taking her eyes off the man "Thank you Mike. You are free to leave."

"Are you okay Mia?" Mike asked

"I'm perfectly well Mike," Mia nodded and Mike shot her a look before leaving her. He exited through the door closing the door right behind him.

"Who are you?" Mia said softly after a moment of silence "And why do I have this strange feeling that I know you?"


	5. Chapter 5: Strange Connections

**Crossed Destinies **

**Chapter 5**

**Strange Connections**

"AHHH!" Mia screamed as she woke up from a terrible nightmare, a sheet of sweat covering her forehead as she breathed in and out, heavily. She looked around and closed her eyes in relief that it was just a dream. In her dream she saw a weird looking monster with a reddish mask and somewhat black or navy blue armour chasing her. He cornered her and unsheathed his sword and raised it to strike her but before the monster struck her she woke up just in time.

She turned to the Voile curtaining and saw the moonlight seep into the room through the open veranda door. She jumped out of bed and onto the veranda as she looked out to the stars; she grabbed a chair from the sidelines and sat on it as she gazed out at the stars, awing at their glow. This reminded her of when she was younger, her mother always used to take her out at night when she couldn't sleep and gaze at the stars.

'If only mum was here,' Mia thought to herself 'She'd probably know what to do.'

Her life right now was too overwhelming for her own good. First, she has to find a husband or else she'll end up with Kevin. Second, she had to deal with the two visitors she had, that were strangely attacked in the woods by a griffin (She'd have to ask Emily if it was true or not since she was there and Emily never lies to the princess). Then thirdly, she'd have to figure out their problem and help then try and understand why she had some sort of connection with the injured man. She was hundred percent sure she had seen him somewhere before but she couldn't put her finger on it.

Lastly, she had to find a way to stop having these strange dreams but she couldn't help but feel that those are warnings. She never understood all these weird non-average things going on in her life but somehow she felt that her, the man and the dreams she's been having have some sort of strange connection.

**XXxxXX**

Emily entered the princess's room that morning after checking on all the other rooms. It was her job to see to it that everything was in order. Usually she'd start by Mia's chamber to see if she's gotten a head start over the day but today she decided to start by the healers' quarters to check on Lauren's little brother, Jayden and her sister Serena not worrying whether Mia had awoke or not but Emily was sure she did because she was meeting another nobleman an hour earlier as she decreed yesterday and she promised to wake up early.

She then went past the guards' quarters to see if they've woken up and gone for training on schedule. She then went to see Lauren who was still asleep and finally went to Mia's room. She knocked on the door once before entering without a response because normally response or not, she was allowed to enter unless told not to. She saw the princess's bed empty and thought that she had already woken up but before she left a cold breeze came in and shook her cold.

Emily turned away from the door to investigate where the breeze was coming from. She then saw the door to the veranda open and went to close it only to gasp and find that Mia had fallen asleep on a chair outside. It was nearing 9:15 and the next nobleman for the first meeting of day was coming in 15 minutes.

"Somehow, I regret not checking on Mia first." Emily muttered to herself before stepping outside onto the veranda shivering from the breeze. "How did she even survive sleeping outside with this unholy breeze?" Emily shook her head as she watched the princess sleep.

"Princess," She whispered but Mia only kept snoozing "Princess," She tried again but same response. Emily decided to take drastic measures placing two fingers in her mouth, blowing making a loud whistling noise making Mia fall out of her chair with a yelp.

"Emily!" Mia shrieked as she looked up to her shivering right hand maiden "What was that for?"

"You make me come out onto the veranda on a shivering morning and I wake you up in an unusual way," Emily complained "You know how much I hate the cold and I know how much you hate being whistled at like a horse. Now we're both even." Mia shook her head as she stood up and took a seat on her chair again.

"It's not even that cold." Mia commented

"That's because you love it cold," Emily stated before shaking her head trying not to get into an argument "Do you know what time it is?"

"Do I have to?" Mia asked in annoyance

"That's because you're meeting the next nobleman in less than 15 minutes." Emily said and Mia's eyes widened

"What?" She yelled in surprise "Why didn't you wake me up?"

"I had to check on the patients in the healers' quarters first but then you decreed it yourself that you'd be meeting him an hour earlier today." Emily stated before Mia rushed off to go and get ready. Emily smirked as she watched Mia go like the wind.

"Change of statement, somehow I do NOT regret on not checking on Mia first." She laughed before stepping off the veranda.

**XXxxXX**

Later in the evening, Lauren went to the healers' quarters after supper to visit her brother. She needed to be strong for him and be there for him. She entered the quarters and entered the room where Jayden was being kept. Lauren took a deep breath before sitting on the chair beside the bed where he laid.

She watched as Jayden breathed in and out with an expressionless face. Lauren looked at the vulnerability showing all over and couldn't help but think it was her fault.

"I'm sorry Jayden," She whispered quietly taking his hand in hers. "I was supposed to be on alert but I let the distraction from my surroundings get the best of me. It's my fault your in this state and I'm sorry. I don't know what I'd do without you bro."Lauren felt tears coming on "Please don't go! You're all I have left Jayden." She said as she stared at him wiping away the tears before hearing a knock on the door before she saw the princess enter.

She quickly stood from her chair and did a slight curtsy. "Good evening princess."

"Good evening," Mia just smiled "There's no need to be formal… I'm not the type who does all the formal greetings."

"I apologize, princess." Lauren said

"And please don't call me princess. I'm fine with being called Mia." Mia said

"Alright Mia." Lauren relaxed a bit before taking her seat again. Mia took a chair from a corner of the room and brought it closer to her so that she could talk to her. She talked to Emily earlier after complaining about today's meeting with the other men and inquired about the two visitors. She was also shocked to hear that the evidence given to the griffin attack story was true.

"So you're Lauren right?" Mia asked and Lauren nodded in response "Where are you from?"

That question took Lauren by surprise as she moved around for a lot of her life. She couldn't say that because Mike and Emily found her and Jayden in the darker side of the forests so that was out of the options. She remembered the name of the village where she came from but couldn't say because that village was part of a myth and they'd figure out she was a Shiba and she owed it to Jayden that much to keep their true identities a secret. She couldn't say the Capital either because Mia would've easily seen through the lie. Mostly because she's princess and she would've know there was a Lauren— something around this kingdom.

"Uh… Stoneridge." Lauren said and Mia nodded but was taken by surprise that she was from the same place as Emily and yet she didn't know who she was but Mia shrugged off the feeling. Stoneridge was the second biggest town in the kingdom after the Capital.

"How do you and this guy know each other?" Mia asked gesturing to Jayden trying to study him.

"He's my little brother," Lauren said

"Both of you are knights?" Mia asked and Lauren nodded "How did you two end up in the darker side of the woods anyway?"

"Long story." Lauren said

"I've got time." Mia forced it

Lauren sighed trying not to lash out at the princess saying that she didn't want to talk about it but being short tempered with her won't help. She needed to come up with a good story to make it believable or it will be a whole bust on everything "I'm not comfortable talking about it right now but I will tell you when I'm ready." Mia nodded and Lauren relaxed a bit at the princess's understanding nature.

"Hopefully he gets well soon." Mia said

"Thank you, I'm sure Jayden would appreciate that." Lauren smiled

"Just know that anytime you need to talk, I'm here for you." Mia said taking responsibility. She was the princess and she needed to take responsibility for her people. Lauren smiled and nodded as she the princess stand and make her way to the door.

"By the way…" Mia said turning away from the door catching Lauren's attention "Is this the first time you and Jayden have been to the capital?" Lauren nodded and Mia looked oddly at her.

"Why do you ask?" Lauren asked

"No reason." She said still staring at Jayden before she left the room. "Goodnight Lauren."

"Goodnight Princess." Lauren nodded and watched her leave. 'That was close,' she thought as she breathed a sigh of relief. She hated lying but she had to do it, in order to keep their identities a secret.


	6. Chapter 6: The Reawakening

**Crossed Destinies**

**Chapter 6**

**The Reawakening**

**Important Author's Note at the end**

Lauren stirred as the light had shown into the room and her eyes fluttered open. She turned her neck but it creaked in an awkward position causing her to yelp in pain and jerk herself only to find that she fell asleep in the healers' quarters. She rubbed the back of her neck and looked at the wall clock and groaned that it was 10.

She hated it when she couldn't train. It made her feel behind on training by a million years. She turned to look at Jayden and looked at him in his sleep and sighed at him. It had been at least three days now and he still hasn't woken up. She stood up only to find a blanket that had fallen to the ground that was on top of her.

She smiled as she wondered who put it on her and was sure all signs pointed to her new friend in yellow. She turned to the door to leave but was stopped by a groaning sound behind her. She turned around and saw Jayden's eyes flutter open after twisting and turning.

"Jayden!" Lauren shouted in happiness as she rushed over to her little brother's bed side and helped him to sit up.

"Lauren… what happened?" Jayden asked gazing around the new environment surrounding him.

"It doesn't matter!" Lauren smiled "All that matters is that you're okay." She said involuntarily hugging him but pulling away sheepishly when he heard her protest in pain.

"Sorry, I just thought I was going to lose you." Lauren continued before her smile turned into a frown and she observed her little brother "Where doesn't it hurt?"

"Upper arm… why?" Jayden answered before asking quizzically. His response was a slap from Lauren and he winced in pain. "Ow! Lauren— what's gotten into you?"

"You just had to play Mr. Red dude superhero and take the hit for me even when your own life is at stake?" Lauren asked him and Jayden smiled at her returning sassy attitude. Jayden honestly thought that his sister was sick or bumped her head when she saw her loving older sister behaviour.

"Sorry Laur… didn't mean to upset you." Jayden said

"Damn right you didn't." Lauren said "But its okay, I'm just glad you're alright."

"One question… where are we?" Jayden said causing Lauren to bite her lower lip and look towards the ground avoiding eye contact. "Lauren, Where are we?" Jayden repeated again and Lauren finally spoke up.

"We're in the Kingdom Capital." She said

**XXxxXX**

Emily was going over to the healers' quarters for the second time today, to check on Lauren. She had noticed that she passed out on a chair near her brother's bedside and thought it was sweet that she'd finally thrown away her fears and see her brother.

As she neared Jayden's room, she heard two voices from inside. One which Lauren and the other one was new. She peeked her head through the crack in the door and saw Lauren with her back turned to her and the guy in the bed, Jayden, awake and sitting up straight despite his injuries.

"Lauren, where are we?" She heard Jayden say

"We're in the Kingdom Capital." Lauren replied

"We're where?" Jayden asked, almost sounding infuriated

"Jayden, I'm sorry I disrespected your decision but when you got injured… the two people standing there offered their help and I needed you to stay with me and I had no choi—"

"Lauren I told you that we needed to stay away from the cities. We're too much of a burden to bear for them." Jayden scolded her and Emily heard Lauren begin to take a few heavy breaths.

"But Jay, it was for your own—"

"You're the only thing the people need. Not me! I've just been there to guide you through Lauren… I told you to do whatever it takes but only protect yourself." Jayden scolded

"But Jay—"

"Lauren, please leave… I need to rest." Jayden said and before Lauren could protest "I said now!"

Emily saw Lauren bow her head and stand up. Emily took this as a hint to get out of clear so she quickly tip toed to an empty room nearby in the quarters and hide herself till Lauren passed by. Emily felt her blood boil as she saw Lauren with a saddened face. She had tried to keep the only person she had left alive and when he woke up the first thing he did was scold her. 'What did he mean by all that anyways?' Emily thought before shaking her head and clenching her fists. She then got out of the room and made her way towards Jayden's room.

She knocked once but after she heard no response, she entered. Jayden looked up from his hands he was playing with and set sights on Emily confused.

"May I help you?" Jayden asked

"No… I came to check on you. I'm Emily, the Right hand maiden to the princess. You must be Jayden, Lauren's brother." Emily said but inside slapped herself. Of course he was her brother.

Jayden then recognised her as the girl from the fight scene. "Okay." Jayden said

"I heard you were awake when I heard you and Lauren arguing." Emily said

"Oh," Jayden said slumping back into the head board

"May I ask what the argument was about?" Emily said and Jayden eyed her strangely.

"I'm sorry but it's between me and my sister." Jayden said

"Well it isn't when someone heard. The walls have ears Jayden," Emily said trying to stay polite "From what the walls picked up… they noticed that you snapped at Lauren for saving your life if I'm not mistaken."

"Um… Emily I really don't think you should—"

"Jayden, I don't understand how people like you who aren't appreciative have wonderful people in their lives. Your sister told me that she only had you left and was afraid of losing you. Even if you weren't she would've still done it." Emily rambled "So before you decide to open your big mouth, I suggest you look at the situation from the other person's perspective. I will request for Penelope to make you something to eat, and tell the Healers to check on you and see if the injuries are dire enough to stay in bed for until healed but taking that fact that you've sat up I think you'll be out of here in no time." Emily then made her way to the door leaving Jayden to himself.

**XXxxXX**

Lauren walked around the castle gardens with a heavy heart, she had tried to be a good older sister but her own brother spat in her face. She just didn't want to lose him and rescuing him felt like the dumbest thing in the world from his perspective.

Mia was releasing another noble man after another meeting gone wrong when she noticed Lauren walking around alone looking down. Mia quickly walked over to her to try and catch her pace but was struggling because she was quite fast.

"Lauren," Mia called out and Lauren, hearing the call, stopped in her tracks. Mia caught up to her and Lauren turned. "Are you okay?" The princess in pink asked the female warrior and she nodded.

"Yeah, just doing some thinking." Lauren said

"Okay," Mia said before springing up a new topic "Emily told me you went to visit Jayden… how's his condition?"

"He- He woke up this morning." Lauren stammered and Mia smiled at her.

"That's really great… you should be—" Mia stopped her rant when she noticed Lauren wasn't happy… in fact she was more sad then she was before. "Why aren't you happy? Is there a problem?"

"No, there is no problem… I just had an argument with him and he's quite mad at me but don't worry, he'll blow off some steam." Lauren assured her

"What was this argument about?" Mia asked and Lauren shook her head.

"It's nothing really," Lauren assured her once more. "It was just one of those silly arguments that siblings have… you know how it is right?"

"Yeah," Mia said, remembering Terry "I do, but they can get pretty intense but—"

"But nothing princess, honestly." Lauren said tracking off "I'll talk to you later." She said as she walked off again, leaving Mia to eye her as she left… again looking a bit down.

Mia knew how it was to argue with a sibling but never did it get so intense that a strong person like Lauren could crack. And again… she hated not knowing what happens in **her **kingdom so she decided it was about time she paid the fallen knight a little visit to find out what was really going on!

**A/N: My first story Life of a Samurai will be rewritten and revived… I only deleted it because it was badly written so I want a good take on it. I am also reviving it because I will be coming on with a series of ranger sagas which will all be linked to each other so I'll have to go step by step.**

**Again, I'd like to thank all those who read and comment on this story. You guys are awesome and it's nice to be writing where people will be reading and to have good feedback really puts a smile on my face.**


	7. Chapter 7: Encounters

**Crossed Destinies**

**Chapter 7**

**Encounters**

**A/N: Sorry! I've been quite busy and my updates will be this 'slow' but otherwise a new chapter.**

**XXxxXX**

Mia entered the castle, walked up the steps and trailed into the Healer's quarters. She hated not knowing what was going on in the castle, especially since she was princess it felt as if she was irresponsible and in control of nothing.

She didn't know what to think when she reached the door Lauren's brother was behind. Half of her seemed quite eager since she wanted to know more about him and figure out her crazy dreams, but half of her wanted to turn around and walk away. If she got there, what would she say, what would she do… what would he think of her.

'Screw it!' She thought as she took a deep breath. She turned to the door, confused about whether she should knock or just walk in. She had a right as princess but everyone has a right to their privacy. So she knocked.

She waited and waited but there was no response, she got annoyed and had no choice but to barge in. She twisted the handle and walked in, to find Jayden staring at his arm bandage.

"If it's Lauren, I have nothing to say to you." He said rudely and Mia only scoffed at the coco blonde.

"If it were Lauren, what would you do?" Mia asked "Because you're already weak enough to raise an arm."

Jayden finally turned to the door, confused at the new voice in the room; He looked straight at Mia recognising her. He opened his mouth to speak, but Mia stopped him.

"Not so fast," Mia said "I know what you're gonna say and I must say that you're a little too late." Jayden snapped his mouth shut and went back to his cast.

Mia then took a seat on the chair nearby "But all I want to know is… what's with all the bitterness?"

"With all due respect Princess, I think you'd be cranky from lying in a bed for days now." Jayden said coldly lifting his head to look at her.

"Trust me, if it were me, I'd be halfway down the hall right now." Mia said earning a small chuckle from Jayden. "And one more thing, don't call me princess… Mia is fine with me."

"Why? Do you hate your status?" Jayden asked

"Not hate— I just think it's exaggerated." Mia replied

"It must be an honour though," Jayden said "I think every girl in the kingdom wants to be a princess."

"It's not glamorous and all that," Mia said "When people think princess they think about the tiaras, the dresses… not actually thinking of the responsibility behind it."

"It's a heavy duty; you have to be a role model, a leader, a decision maker." Jayden said earning a scoff from Mia

"Not sure about the last part." Mia said

"Princ— Mia, anyone can be a leader but it takes a good leader to make sacrifices for the people they are to protect." Jayden said "You can do what you want but— will it benefit for others?"

"But if I do what they want me to do then how will I benefit?" Mia asked

"Sometimes compromise may be needed but it takes a real leader to sacrifice his or her own needs for others." Jayden said

"You must have experience in that kind of stuff." Mia said

"You have no idea," the knight retorted earning a laugh from the princess.

"But, why so angry at Lauren?" Mia asked

"It's pretty complicated," The coco blonde replied "All I know is that she should worry about herself more than me."

Mia sighed and put a hand on his shoulder lightly, making sure not to hurt him. "I know what it feels like to care about someone that much, wishing he was safer than me but sometimes… we have to allow things to happen because we can't control what happens next. And just as we want them safe, they want us safe just as much. So, put yourself in your shoes… what would you have done?"

Jayden only looked down at his bandage and Mia sighed, standing up from her chair. "If you need someone to talk to, just know that you can come to me." Jayden looked at her with a cocked brow and gestured to the bandages.

Mia let out a sheepish grin before nodding like an idiot. "Yeah, maybe, it can be the other way round… or you get what I'm saying… okay." She said with a sheepish laugh in her tone before exiting the room, taking a breather.

'What just happened?'

**XXxxXX**

Emily drew her sword downwards, attacking her invisible opponent before drawing it again in different directions. Mike who was walking by a few minutes ago stopped and watched his yellow friend train in private. It was at times like this where he knew he'd find her training, since she knew the regular schedules by heart; she'd always find time to practice without disturbance.

But something was off about her today,

She was moving her sword in this fierce movement as if she was angry so Mike decided to investigate to find out. He walked out of his hiding spot and over to Emily.

"Hey Em— Whoa!" was what he said before a sword almost hit him, luckily he duck under it. Emily turned to him and her concerned feelings kicked into overdrive and she rushed over to the guard in green.

"Mike, are you okay?" Emily asked checking for any wounds or cuts she might have caused.

"Nah, I'm fine." Mike said "You missed— luckily for me though." He said and Emily chuckled. "What's up with you? You never train like that unless you're angry."

"I'm not angry, just annoyed." Emily said putting her sword down and walked over to the bench sitting down, Mike followed and sat beside her. "You see that guy we brought here days ago?"

"Yeah, what about him?" Mike asked

"He woke up today and instead of thanking Lauren he made her feel bad for saving him." Emily said "What a jerk!"

"Do you know what he snapped at her for?" Mike asked

"I'm not sure, you know how Lauren is," Emily said "She's practically a Rubik's cube; imagine her and her brother in the same room… confusion flying everywhere."

"Well, Em. You can't make accusations like that," Mike said "You know how some people are when they wake up, they are grumpy and imagine waking up after days… you'd be grumpy as well. And by the looks of the guy, he'd be way worse than others."

"So, Lauren's brother Jayden might be going through a phase?" Emily said

"It's like throwing a pillow at someone who wakes you up in the morning." Mike said "He just needs space and time."

"But he seemed wide awake to me." Emily retorted with a scoff

"Em, just leave the guy to a bit of space and time, he must be really cranky." Mike said and Emily nodded.

"I have to go and organise the next noblemen meeting the princess tomorrow." Emily said and Mike rolled his eyes.

'All she ever talks about is 'princess this', 'princess that'.' Mike thought in annoyance, the princess **can** take care of herself but seems to pin everything to Emily which annoys Mike… because of that he feels as if he barely sees his best friend and Emily barely takes care of herself.

"I'm sure Mia can do that by herself." Mike said

"Mike, she has issues and she's confused right now." Emily said "She needs me."

"Yeah and so does everyone else in this castle. You are practically the glue that holds this place together and still your own life is falling apart." Mike said with a small growl at the back of his throat

"No it isn't." Emily argued

"When was the last time you actually visited home?" Mike asked

"I have my duties here that need to be attended to."

"Well what about your friends… Kevin, Penelope — when did you last to talk to them and telling them the princess's orders isn't an excuse." Mike finally snapped "What about Serena? When was the last time you actually spent time with her? She's sick and all you seem to care about is someone who is well enough to take care of herself!"

Emily felt a sting in her heart at these words. Mike's expression softened when he noticed what he had just said. "Em, I am so—"

"Mike, you're right." Emily said "I haven't been able to hold my own life together and I guess I should make time for everything but with the trouble going around in the kingdom… I guess I have to set aside my own happiness for the sake of others."

Mike gave her a one armed hug and comforted her a bit. He felt sorry for her, she had to do some much as if one person carried the world on her shoulders. He hated seeing her this way, as if she knows what to do for others but know next to nothing about helping herself. Emily was losing a lot, her friends, her family, her sister… most of all, Mike thought that he was losing her.


End file.
